This application claims priority to provisional application Ser. No. 60/515,733 filed Oct. 30, 2003.
The invention relates to an exhaust sampling system having a dilution tunnel. Prior art exhaust sampling system using tunnels have two significant problems. First, particulate matter is deposited on portions of the dilution tunnel causing inaccuracies in the results since this particulate matter is never sampled or collected on the filter media and measured. Prior art dilution tunnels having mixing plates that are prone to stagnant areas in which the turbulent flow of exhaust and dilution gases through the orifice recirculate and collect on the surface of the mixing plate near the orifice. Particulate matter carried in the mixture is deposited on walls in the stagnant area, which results in this particulate matter not being collected by the filter resulting in inaccuracies. One proposed solution was to provide a fluid chamber arranged outside of the dilution tunnel. The dilution tunnel included perforations in its walls that permitted fluid to flow from the fluid chamber into the dilution tunnel. However, this arrangement did not prevent particulate matter from collecting on the surfaces of the dilution tunnel.
Second, prior art tunnels are significantly long and difficult to package. Prior art tunnels are designed to have a considerably long passage to ensure that the exhaust gas and dilution gas have adequately mixed by the time the mixture is sampled within the tunnel. Also, the length contributes to the amount of particulate matter that tends to collect on the surfaces of the dilution tunnel.
What is needed is a shorter dilution tunnel having which is configured in such a way to prevent the deposit of particulate matter on the surfaces of the dilution tunnel.